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Oakland Raiders: 5 players to watch in training camp

By Nico Di Fede

LOS ANGELES, CA - NOVEMBER 19: Lamarcus Joyner #20 of the Los Angeles Rams tackles Travis Kelce #87 of the Kansas City Chiefs after a pass play which ended on the five yard line during the third quarter of the game at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on November 19, 2018 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA - NOVEMBER 19: Lamarcus Joyner #20 of the Los Angeles Rams tackles Travis Kelce #87 of the Kansas City Chiefs after a pass play which ended on the five yard line during the third quarter of the game at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on November 19, 2018 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images) /
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Oakland Raiders
GLENDALE, AZ – AUGUST 12: Quarterback Drew Stanton #5 of the Arizona Cardinals throws a pass ahead of defensive tackle Eddie Vanderdoes #94 of the Oakland Raiders during the NFL game at the University of Phoenix Stadium on August 12, 2017 in Glendale, Arizona. The Cardinals defeated the Raiders 20-10. Oakland Raiders (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /

4. Eddie Vanderdoes

The third-year defensive tackle out of UCLA has been plagued with injuries thus far in his career spending all of last year injured failing to play in a single game. He played in all 16 games throughout his rookie season but did not make much of an impact.

The Raiders drafted both Maurice Hurst and P.J. Hall last year, and with the re-signing of both Johnathan Hankins and Justin Ellis — who play similar roles to that of Vanderdoes as one-gap nose guards — Eddie Vanderdoes will have to make a big impression to have a chance this summer.

It seems like Vanderdoes has always gotten praise from both coaching staffs he’s played for, and Jon Gruden is apparently excited to see what he can do. Despite not providing much of an impact in his rookie season, he still showed flashes of pass-rush potential.

The 24-year-old did have 12 pressures and 10 hurries in 2017 to go along with two QB hits. Those may not look like great numbers, but they are pretty good for a nose guard whose job is primarily to take on double teams and stuff the run.

Hopefully, Vanderdoes doesn’t suffer the same fate as a lot of former general manager Reggie McKenzie‘s picks. Vanderdoes is one of the few McKenzie picks left on the roster and soon we’ll see whether or not that number gets even smaller.

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